Donation Request Letter Form

A request for donation template is a reusable form that can be used by charities and non-profit organizations. It provides a friendly, professional template to help you quickly and easily draft a donation request. Although it is common to use a request for donation template toward the end of the year to help potential donors maximize their potential tax write-offs, it can be used at any time during the year to solicit donations.

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What is a donation request letter?

This document is a formal letter used by charities and donation organizations in order to request that people donate to their cause. Donation letters are an important part of any charity seeking funding for a certain cause or fundraising for charitable events. Donation request letters allow organizations to reach a wide range of people all across the world.

Donation request letters should always be written in a friendly, professional, and easy-to-read manner. This will ensure the letter reaches a wide audience. Each letter should detail what your organization does and what it will do with the donations it receives. This ensures your potential donors know where their money is going at all times. These simple aspects can help boost the amount of money your organization receives through charitable donations.

When should you use a donation request letter?

You can use a donation request letter at any time; however, they tend to be particularly effective toward the end of the calendar year. At the end of the year, your donors will tend to be more generous because it is the holiday season. Additionally, your donors may want to increase their charitable giving as it nears time to do their taxes.

Common Scenarios

Donation request letters are commonly used for:

Individual fundraising - Use an individual fundraising letter to raise money for a cause or project that means a lot to you. Individuals who are fundraising for personal causes often choose to raise money online through a crowdfunding campaign and social media. An individual fundraising letter could direct recipients to your online fundraising page to give them an easy way to make a donation.

Church fundraising - Church fundraising letters can be used for general church-related contributions, but they can be used for specific fundraising efforts.

Charity auction item requests

Fundraising event donations

Mission trip fundraising

Missionary support

Sponsorship requests

Matching gift fundraising emails or letters - Nonprofits can use letters to remind their donors that their charitable contributions may be doubled or tripled by their companies. The best time to promote matching gifts is in a follow-up letter right after a donation has been made. The letter thanks the donor for the donation and encourages them to submit a matching gift request.

Sponsorship letters - A sponsorship request letter is used to solicit donations for a specific project or event from a company or business owner. A corporate donation request letter usually explains the fundraising needs of the organization and offers different levels of sponsorship. Each level of sponsorship comes with different perks.

Volunteer time request - Sometimes organizations need individuals to volunteer their time. A donation letter that seeks people to volunteer their time will explain the work that needs to be done, how that work will support the organization, and how the work will be beneficial to society as a whole.

Why is a donation letter important?

A donation letter is important because it is a great way to gain assistance and support for your causes. Many people are willing to support charitable causes, but you need to connect with them to let them know about the situation and how they can help.

How to write a donation request letter

To write a donation request letter, you should:

Know exactly what you are requesting

Make sure you know your audience

Include the date and the recipient’s full address

Personalize the letter - donors will appreciate a personal touch

Keep the letter specific and professional

Use specific examples and stories to tell a story about your cause

Communicate your fundraising goal for this particular initiative

Include a specific ask (example: donate money, items, or time)

Provide details on how to donate

Mention if the contribution is tax-deductible

Thank them for their consideration

You may find it helpful to look at sample letters or work from a donation letter template.

A Sample Donation Request Letter:

Feed the Homeless

4567 Greenhouse Way

Las Vegas, Nevada 89101

October 1, 2018

Mr. David Goliath

2104 Andrew Road

Las Vegas, Nevada 89101

Dear Mr. Goliath,

Feed the Homeless has been supporting the homeless community in Las Vegas since 2005. Last year, our non-profit organization provided hundreds of thousands of meals to people who are living on our streets. Our organization is 100% supported by generous donors like you.

One of the homeless teens who we fed last week, David, told our volunteers, “If it wasn’t for Feed the Homeless, I wouldn’t know where I would get my next meal. Thank you for bringing us food.”

As the holiday season approaches, we are fundraising for our Holiday Campaign to provide warm meals to the thousands of homeless people in our area who will be living on the streets during the holidays.

We would be grateful if you would continue your generous support of our organization by contributing to our Holiday Campaign. Your gift will go towards purchasing the ingredients, preparing and packaging the food, and distributing the food.

You can donate by calling our offices at (702) 555-1100 or online at www.feedthehomeless.com.

Your donation is 100% tax-deductible. Our 501(c)(3) number is 12345-678910.

Your gift will have an impact of the entire homeless population in Las Vegas. Thank you for your continuing support and consideration.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Smith

President, Feed the Homeless

Best practices

To write the most effective donation letters, you should:

Personalize the letter - Address the person by name instead of saying “Dear Friend,” or “Dear Supporter.”

Elaborate About the Benefits - Benefits can be both intangible and tangible. Intangible benefits include things like when a donor donates money to stop hunger and it makes them happy. A tangible benefit could be when you send the donor a gift certificate as a thank you for the donation.

Ask for Donation - Make a clear request for a donation. Provide an easy way for the donor to make a contribution, such as providing a reply envelope or a website and phone number to make contributions online and over the phone. Give details on how to make in-kind donations.

Cause Urgency - Write a letter that conveys a sense of urgency so that the donor is inclined to donate right away.

Revise and Edit - Make sure that there are no spelling or grammar mistakes. Proofread to make sure that everyone will understand what you have to say.

Before Writing

Before you begin writing your letter, you should keep the following things in mind:

Know your target audience - Who are you writing to? This should affect how you format the letter and the words that you use.

Get the attention of the reader - Make sure that you include something that will make your letter stand out. Include some facts or statistics that will keep the reader’s attention. Tell success stories. Make an emotional appeal.

Be specific - Donors may not read the entire letter. Be specific in your ask.

Do not mention the donation amount - If you specify an amount, you might turn off some donors who are unable to donate that amount or limit yourself if the donor had been willing to donate more than you asked for.

Trump Tweets vs Natural Disaster Donations

By Maya Wald and Jackson Hille

December 1, 2017

Our team wanted to see how much money President Trump could have raised if he added a donation link to his four most popular tweets during the time periods of each natural disaster since he took office: Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria and the California Wildfires. We based this calculation on the retweet to donation ratio of JJ Watt’s GoFundMe campaign for the victims of Hurricane Harvey.